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Kim,
Wonderful work! I've very much enjoyed seeing your work on the other sites, and this piece is very ambitious. I've been out of town, thus my delay in getting back to you.
I like the feel to your piece, it is very lyrical. If I were doing a straight forward anatomical critique of the detail you've posted, the eyes are a little low on the face. The eyes are usually half way between the chin and the top of the head. But this is not a straight out commission, it is a narrative piece, and many of the rules that hold us to certain conventions in portrait art do not apply to figurative art, where the story is most important. The head is beautiful and sensitive, as well as solid and dimensional.
This may be a little bit of a stretch from your moving and sensitive drawings, but I am reminded of the drawings and illustrations by the great Medical Illustrator, Dr. Frank Netter. He was the undisputed master of his field because his illustration told the story. From discomfort to disabling pain, you knew from his drawings what the patients were feeling.
I am very excited to see the progression of this piece. And I am interested in finding your reaction to the titanium. I was just attending an Allan Banks workshop, and was using lead white to a degree I was unfamiliar with, so we are both experimenting! I think it is valuable to have all the tools available in your arsenal. Lead white has interesting properties, as does titanium. Allan did introduce me to Davey's gray. He uses it to tone down the volume on a chroma that is too high. Davey's gray is transparent, and whisper thin. It does its job without a fuss. I think I might be adding it to my palette.
Best of luck!
Peggy
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